
:\i()i \'r \v\snf\(;T()N 



CAR HI A (IK 110 A J). 




Glass. 
Book. 



EAi 

;\A/ 5 ^% 



stent 0f Mmwi 




CARRIAGE ROAD. 

The Charter to construct this Road, was granted 
by the State of New Hampshire, in July, 1853. The 
Surveys for the location, were commenced immediately, 
under the direction of Mr. Robert E. Ricker, an 
Engineer, whose ability and experience was such, as to 
warrant the belief, that neither skill, care, nor labor 
would be spared in faithfully executing the difficult task 
before him. ' The result has shown, that the Directors 
of th(X Company were not mistaken in the manTrTTis 
now known, that the very best location, both as to grade 
and expense, has been chosen in ascending the mountain, 
while, at the same, time the most interesting and magnifi- 
cent points of observation are obtained all along the line of 
the Road, to the summit of Mount Washington, the last 
mile of the Road being made to entirely encircle the up- 
per cone of the mountain, while, at the same time, the reg- 
ular ascending grade continues to the level plateau on 
the top, 6285 feet above the Ocean. 

It is proper here to remark, that in locating the 
" Mount Washington Carriage Road," from the base to 
the summit of the mountain, eight miles and one-quarter 
in length, it is believed that more care, time, skill and 
expense has been expended than upon the same length of 



MOUNT WASHINGTON, 



any Railroad line in the United States. The field work 
under Mr. Ricker, and his able assistant, Mr. Cavis, 
who is now the Superintendent of the Road, was not 
completed until late in the fall of 1853, and the map 
and profiles were prepared during the following winter, 
and this map, being about 7 feet by 3, is the first and 
only reliable one ever yet made of the White Mountains, 
in the vicinity of, and including Mount Washington. 

CHARACTER OF THE ROAI). 

The Road from the Glen House to the summit of Mt. 
Washington is 8 1-4 miles in length, and 16 feet in 
clear width between the ditching and the outer angle of 
the roadway or protection wall. The outside of the road 
is raised one foot higher than the inside, thus giving it a 
slope toward the mountain, inwards, of 3-4 of an inch 
to one foot. This prevents the washing out, or injuring 
of the road-bed by water ; an ample ditch being con- 
structed on the inside with sluices under the road, sufii- 
cient for drainage of rain or snow-freshets. The grade 
of the road in no place exceeds a rise of one foot in seven 
the average being one in nine and a half, and the con- 
struction is after the best manner of the English Mc- 
Adamized roads^ there being from 1 to 8 inches thickness 
of fine broken stone on the entire surface. The grade 
of this road is lighter than that constructed over the Alps 
by Napoleon ; but there being no tunnels to cut or heavy 
masonry arches to construct, as in that famous road the 
cost of this per mile is far less. While the surveys for 
theMt. Washington Road were in progress, Mr. Ste- 
phenson, the celebrated English Engineer, visited New 
Hampshire, in company with Messrs. Betts and Jackson, 



CARRIAGE ROAD. 



English Contractors on the Grand Trunk Railway,the hit- 
ter gentlemen having taken stock in this enterprise — Mr. 
Stephenson strongly recommended, that the grade of the 
Road should be so reduced as to enable the Company 
hereafter to use steam in ascending and descending, and 
he was at that time engaged in constructing a similar 
Railway over the Appenines. It was, however, deter- 
mined for the present, to be content with a McAdamiz- 
ed road of the best character. 

In all places where there is any dangerous precipitan- 
cy, a heavy protection-wall is built on the outer side of 
the Road, three feet thick and 2 1-2 feet high. 

PROGRESS AND COMPLETION OF THE 
WORK. 

As early in the Spring of 1854 as the melting of the 
snows would allow, contractors were notified, and an ex- 
amination of the line and proposals for the construction 
of the work invited. Such examinations were made by a 
number of Railroad Contractors from time to time, but 
the novel character of the work, (no mountain road of 
the kind ever having been built in the United States,) 
and the formidable difficulties to be encountered in its 
construction, together with the detailed strictness of the 
specifications^ ail combined to prevent a contract being 
entered into, until July 20th, when the Company con- 
cluded one with Messrs. Rich & Meyers of Massachu- 
setts. 

The work was begun in the month of August 1854, 
but, unlike any other road, this could only be commenc- 
ed at one point, the base of the mountain, as the Contrac- 
tors were obliged to construct a road as they progressed, 



MOUNT WASHINGTON 



over which they could haul bj teams, all their pro\dsions, 
tools, etc. etc. Any other course would have greatly in- 
creased the cost of construction, as all such provisions 
and tools must have been ^' backed up " by men, there 
being no possibility of getting a horse along the line, 
over the rocks. 

For the reasons above stated, the progress cf this 
work up to this time has been necessarily slow ; but as 
the most difficult portion is now completed, (4 miles of it 
vras used for horse travel during the last season) and a 
point above " The Ledge " reached, there will be a cer- 
tainty of completing the road to the Summit, so as to use 
carriages in July 1856. 

CARRIAGES FOR THE ROAD, 

It is perfectly evident upon reasonable reflection, that 
any vehicle built solely to run upon a road having a uni- 
form ascent of more than five hundred feet to the mile^ 
should be constructed somewhat different from those in- 
tended to run upon a level, or a slightly undulating sur- 
face. Upon this, much thought and care has been ex, 
pended by the President of the Company, and the result 
has been that an Omnibus has been planned, and nine of 
them are now being built by Downing & Sons, of New 
Hampshire, for carrying passengers up and down this 
road. The improvements are : — 

1st. The body of the carriage will be level^ both w^hen 
ascending and descending the Mountain* 

2d. The 12 inside passengers are so placed by a new 
arrangement of the seats, as neither to face the horses nor 
one another^ but will sit at an angle of 45*^ to the side of 
the Omnibus, each in a seperate arm-chair seat, giving 
free view on either side of the roadj and protected by 



CARRIAGE ROAD. 



plate -glass windows when necessary, having more than 
the usual room in the middle of the Omnibus to pass in 
and out. 

3d. The safety of the Passengers is fully provided 
for by a new application of brakes, they being applied 
by the use of a wheel which is operated by the driver's 
feet and the '^ set^^ upon the wheels regulated by a ratch- 
et or clip, fitting into the shaft wheel of the brake. 

4th. To insure still greater safety in descending the 
Mountain, the application of the brake is placed within 
the reach of the Passengers by a strap and ring lying on 
the bottom of the Omnibus, and by using which, any one 
inside may instantly arrest the motion of the Omnibus, 
by blocking the hind wheels. 

Thus the road is fitted to the carriages, and the car- 
riages to the road, for it is a mistake to suppose that hor- 
ses, however true and steady, can hold a load down an 
undeviating descent of eight miles, without a more than 
ordinary arrangement of safety brakes. 

In connection with the project of building a carriage 
road to the top ofMt. Washington, there is still another, 
which, in its grasp of importance, and interest with the 
whole community, far outweighs the first, and which, so 
far as it has become known, meets with unlimited ap- 
probation. It is the erection by the Road Company of a 
JYational Observatory for the Government on the summit 
of the Mountain, in connection with a large and substan- 
tial Hotel, and to place so much of the house as shall be 
necessary, together with the free use of the Road, entirely 
at the disposal of the Government. 

The arguments in favor of establishing a permanent 
building on the top of Mount Washington, for Scientific 
purposes, are numerous and weighty. Among them are : 

1st. Mt. Washington is the highest accessible point of 



6 MOUNT WASHlNGTOir. 



land in the United States, east of the Rocky Mountains^ 
being 6285 feet above the level of the sea, according to 
actual measurement, made by William A. Goodwin, 
Esq., Civil Engineer, in 1852, who was employed for 
that purpose by the Atlantic and St. Lawrence Raiboad 
Company. , 

2d. The construction of a McAdamized Carriage 
Road, chartered by the State of New Hampshire,, in 
July, 1853, and which will be completed in 1856, will 
render the ascent of the Mountain easy and safe for a 
great portion of the year* 

3d. A line of Telegraph is to be constructed to the 
Summit of Mt. Washington, and is already commenced 
connecting with the line now in operation from Portland 
to JNlontreal, and which line connects at Portland, with 
lines to Boston, New York, Washington, Cincinnati, &c» 

4th. A large Hotel is to be erected on the top of the 
IviOuntaiUj by the Mt. W^ashington Road Company y 
which Hotel, together with the necessary out buildings, 
will occupy all the available space on the Summit, which 
is suitable for such purposes, and which is ah^eady laid 
out, and can be completed during the year 18;. 6 or '57, 
the company who erected the first building of any 
kind on the Summit, and have merged all their interests 
in the new building. 

5th. The Mt. Washington Road Company have re- 
cently obtained by purchase, the title and possession of 
the Summit of x\lt. Washington, and hold the same by 
a full guarantee from those perfectly ahle^ to defend 
them in such title and possession, against any and all 
claimants ; and this purchase covers as much of Mtc 
Washington as may be necessary for their Road, and 
buildings of every kind in connexion with the same. 

6th. It has beexi ascertained by experience, that it i& 
almost impossible to so wholly isolate the main or centre 
pillar of those buildings devoted to accurate astronomical 
observations J as to be entirely free from vibration effected 



CATtMAGE ROAP. 



"by external causes. Even at Grecnwicli (F^ngland) tliis 
difficulty is experienced in the use of delicately adjust- 
ed instruments. But it is believed that this obstacle 
may be wholly overcome by making the Summit of the 
rock-rooted Alt. Washington, the foundation of such a 
pillar. 

Tth. When the building, ^yith an Observatory attach- 
ed, shall be completed, and finished ^\vith the necessary 
instruments, scientific observations may be kept up 
throughout the entire year^ giving, over the Telegraph 
■wires, to Washington, New York, Cincinnati, &c., three 
times each day (viz. sun-rise, meridian and sun-set,) the 
record of the Thermometer, Barometrr and Wind, and 
also the duration and poicer of storms. 

Sth. Mt. Washington has been for \ears past, and 
may be for years to come, the culminating point of many 
of the most important and interesting observations con- 
nected with the Coast Surveys, undei' charge of Profess- 
or Bache, and which are now becoming of so much ac- 
knowledged practical utuity to the great commercial in- 
terests of the United States, and of the icorld, 

9th. It is evident that, if an Observatory for the use 
of the Government, and the benefit of the public, is ever 
to be erected on the Summit of Mt. Washington, it 
should be built in connection with the House, now about 
to be commenced, and both constructed in the most dur- 
able and permanent manner, not only to resist the force 
of the elements, but also, for the safety and comfort of 
those whom it may be necessary to station there during 
the winter season, for scientific observations, and who 
will be wholly inaccessible to those below, for at least 
five consecutive months. 

10th. The proposition to the United States Govern- 
ment will embrace all the advantages of furnishing an ex- 
cellent road for its use, and keeping the same in repair, 
erecting a tower for scientific observations, with movable 
dome, and with a centre isolated pilUr, on which to 



MOUNT WASHINGTON. 



place instruments, Avith sufficient rooms for observations, 
and also for the use of any scientific corps it may be 
necessary to place there, with appurtenances for heating 
the same during the winter months. These rooms, to- 
gether with the Observatory, to be entirely under the 
control of the Government^ and, if desirable, built under 
the inspection of scientific gentlemen to be named by the 
President. 

The following, is an extract from the Petition of the 
Company, which has been prepared, and which will be 
presented to Congress at its next session : 
" The President and Directors of the Mount Wash- 
ington Road Company, propose to the United States 
Government to build for the Government and for sci- 
entific purposes an Observatory on the top of Mount 
Washington, in the State of New Hampshire, in the 
manner following, to wit : 

1st. The Observatory to be 25 feet square, w^ith walls 
4 feet in thickness, and to be not less than 40 feet liigh 
above the top of Mount Washington. 

2d. The rooms inside to be 17 feet square, or of an 
octagon form, and a stone pi'lar to be erected in the cen- 
ter from the foundatio7i to the top, eiitirely disconnected 
with the walls, with stone beams projecting from it in 
the several stories, for the reception of Transit Instru- 
ment. Transit Clock, Jlrttjicial Horizon, ^x. ^'c. 

od. The walls of the Observatory to be built of stone 
in the most substantial and dur'iUe manner, with a trav- 
erseing dome, fitted according to the most approved 
scientific buildings ot this character. 

4th. The Observatory to be erected as a Tower to 
and in connection with, a large substantial stone build- 
ing, drawings and plan of which are herewith submitted 
to be three stories high, with flat roof, and calculated to 
accommodate 200 visitors during the summer months. 



ROAD COMPANY, 



6th. The " Mount Washington Road Company," un- 
der their charter of incorporation, a cop;>^ of whicli is 
herewith submitted, are buihiing a substantial Carriage 
Road from the base to the top of Mt. VVasington -with 
an average grade not exceeding one foot in nine, and 
eight miles long, to be completed before July, 1856. 

6th. The Company will place this road at tlie ser- 
vice of the U. S. Government and will transport all m- 
struments^ furniture^ and pei'sons belonging to or con- 
nected with the Government Observatory, over the same 
jfree of charges of any kind^ at all times when the said 
road shall not be rendered impassable by the elements. 

Tth. The Mt. Washington Road Company will erect 
a substantial line of Telegraph wires from the top of Mt. 
Washington, to connect with the line ah^eady in opera- 
tion along the line of the Atlantic and St. Lawrence 
Railroad, which is distant only eight miles from the base 
of the mountain, and which Telegraph line connects at 
Portland (Maine,) with the lines extending to New York, 
Philadelphia, Boston, Washington, Cincinnati, and oth- 
er portions af the Uniten States, 

8th. To facilitate the continuation of scientific obser- 
vations during the entire year on the top of Mt. Wash- 
ington, The Mt. Washington Road Company will place 
at the disposal of the U. S. Government, such portions of 
the building as shall be necessary for the accomodation 
of those who may be in the employment of the Govern- 
ment, or of any Scientific Society approved by Govern- 
ment, icithout chaage, and will transport at their own 
cost, over their road, all fuel, provisions, &c, for the 
support and convenience of such persons. 

9th. To enable the Mt. Washington Road Company, 
to build this National Observatory for the Government, 
in the manner stated above, and in accordance with plans 
of the same herewith submitted, and fur the furnishing a 
Carriage Road, Telegraph communication, and all tlie 
facilities above stated for the use of the United State^ 



10 MOUNT WASHINGTON 



Government, and the cause of Science throughout the 
Avorld, they ask in consideration an appropriatic-n of 
§100.000 to be expended under a joint commission of 
two persons, the one to be named by the Government, 
and the other to be the President of the Mt. Washing- 
ton Road Company !' 

The Charter of the Mt. Washington Road Company, 
authorizes them to continue their road over the summit 
of Mt. Washington and down to the County road on the 
opposite side. 

All the surveys for this continuation have been made 
during the past season^ and the maps and profiles are 
now being prepared. 

The number of annual visitors to the White Moun- 
tains, has been on the increase for the last twenty years, 
and during the past summer, Avas over 20,000. To ac- 
commodate this travel, there are now ten Hotels in the 
vicinity of Mt. Washington, which have been erected as 
Summer houses, and although most of them are large j 
they w^ere found entirely inadequate to accommodate the 
wants of vistiors during the months of July and August. 

It has been ascertained by experience and observation 
of those persons, who are recovering from protracted ill- 
ness -those wdiose mental and physical energies have been 
prostrated by continued exertions, and those who have 
suffered by a long residence at the South, that a visit to 
the White Mountains almost immediately restores health 
and vigor to mind and body. These facts are not of re- 
cent or sudden development, but have been gradually 
elicited by years of experience, and the result is, that 
many of our most eminent physicians recommend a visit 
to the White Mountains, 9S an almost certain cure to 



CARRIAGE ROAD. H 



their convalescing patients. The sensation of lightness 
and exhileration, and of strength and vigor experienced 
bj all those who ascend Mt. Washington, seems to look 
to a cause greater than tlie purity of the air and water. 

May not the following letter from Prof. Johnston of 
the Wesley an University of Middletown Conn., throw 
some light upon this subject : — 



MiuuLETowN, Ct , Nov. lOth, 1855. 
My Dear Sir; — 

You request an e.stimat€ of the difference of the average pressure 
of the atmosphere, upon the whole surface of the human system, at 
tlie Glen House and the Summit of Mt. Washington, and also at the 
level of the Sea aid the >uinmit of the same mountain, 

Dr. Lardner, (Handbook of Hydrostatics, &.c., Khiladelphia, 1851, 
page 7v!,) estimates (he whole surface of a full grown person of medi- 
um size at 2000 square inches, which, considering the ordinary pressure 
of the atmosphere at sea- level to be 15 pouids to the square inch* 
gives 30,000 pounds, as the whole pressure of the atmosphere upon 
the system. 

We will assume this to be correct, and suppose further, that at the 
same time, the mercury in the barometer would stand at 30 inches. 

Now, other things being equal, the whole pressure upon the s}stem 
at different stations, or at the same static n at different times, will af*- 
ways be exactly proportional to the height of the mercury in the ba- 
rometer, at these times. Dr (.'harles T. Jackson, found the barometer 
to stand, on the Summit of Mt. Washington, August 21st and 22d, 
1840, at 24.301 inches (average of fourteen observatiors) and about 
the same time it stood at the base (Cravvfords) at 28.23G inches. At 
Portsmouth the same day, 38 feet pbove tide-water, it stood a little 
above 30 inches. (Final Report on the Geology and Mineralogy of 
New Nampsbire, pages 287, 288 and 300.) 

From these data we have the foilowirg reeults, viz : 
Pressure upon the system at Sea level 30,000 pounds, or 15 tons. 
Do- do. al Crawford's 2^^.236 " 

Do. do. at Summit, 24.301 " 



12> MOUNT WASHINGTON 



Difference, of pressure between sea- level and Crawford's, 1764 lbs 

Do. do- sea-level and Summit, 5699 '' 

Do. do. Crawford's and Summit, 3935 *• 

I have no data from which to estimate the pressure at the Glen 

House, but I suppose it would be very nearly the same as Crawford's. 

Rispectfully Yours, 

JOHN .JOHNSTON, 
p. 0. i..^ACOMBER, Esq. 

President Mount. Washington Road Co. 

All who visit the White Mountains are desirous of as- 
cending Mt. Washington, and, it is believed, wiU do so, 
when the road is completed, and they can ascend with 
ease, safety and comfort. Mt. Washington has ever 
been considered as an object of national interest. The 
seekers of health and pleasure, or relaxation from busi- 
ness, from every part of the Union, and from Canada, 
and the Provinces meet and mingle here in quiet enjoy- 
ment. There is every reason to believe that this will 
continue and increase so long as the summer solstice 
brings its burning heat, and man prefers the health-giv- 
ing breeze of the mountain to the sultry, sickly air of the 
city and town. 

New Hampshire, Dec. 1st, 1855. 



I 



LIBRARY OF CONGRESS 



013 984 820 2 % 



^v 







